JJ Nowak’s First Blog

John Nowak - Ecuador

August 25, 2019

Hey, guys! Welcome to my first blog post… ever! For all of those readers who don't know me, I'm just a guy from the middle of Kansas, USA looking forward to a Global Citizen Year that will test every one of my limits – in Ecuador! If you're lucky enough to know me personally, you know the story!

Regarding my upcoming adventures, I hope to earn, learn & achieve many things over the coming year. Given that I will have plenty of "Ecua-time" during my stay, I plan to think lots about what I want in life; rather than running the "rat race" nonstop, as most people seem to do. Additionally, I originally applied to this program for hopes of traveling and living in a different country, learning a new language (Spanish), along with building an insane amount of skills, experiences and character. In general, and less specifically, I want to be able to take a step back from my short 19 years of life to grow, build skills and just think.

I'm currently writing this in a laundromat off of Ocean Avenue in San Francisco, twelve hours before my sister will drop me off at Stanford University. Twelve hours from now my life will be flipped upside down and my Global Citizen Year will start. Twelve hours from now this growing up stuff begins. So readers, keep reading and following my blog posts because things are about to change for the better.

With lots of taco vibes,

JJ

About John

Ecuador - 2020

JJ is passionate about inciting positive change, environmental sustainability, and leadership. Throughout his adolescent years, he has been involved in recycling, fighting against cancer through The American Cancer Society - Relay For Life Youth events, along with Feed My Starving Children, a program, which provides meals for growing children in developing countries. His goals for the year are to improve his Spanish fluency, to get involved with his new community as much as possible, along with aiming to contribute and gain perspective during his Global Citizen Year. His favorite quote is "Eyes are useless if the mind is blind."